Something about fall brings out the Harry Potter in everyone! This was especially true for my sister. Years ago now, I threw her a Harry Potter Birthday party, since her birthday was in October. The cool fall air (we were in California at the time) and the moody fall breeze made a perfect backdrop for this Harry Potter Party! I have a few suggestions below for you to host your very own Harry Potter Party, based on that party years ago, and some more modern and fun things you can use/do as well!
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Setting the Scene: Harry Potter Decor
First, we have to start with the party decorations. Setting the scene, so to speak, will have the biggest impact on the overall feeling and theme of your party. So, a few places to shop for items could be Michael’s Crafts, Hobby Lobby, Amazon, a dollar store, a party supply store, or even Target or Walmart. Look for things like:
- Owls
- Vintage looking books
- Wizard themed items
- Cauldrons
- Brooms
- Witch/Wizard hats
- Potion Bottles
- Pumpkins
I found this Harry Potter Cauldron at Party City, which is a party supply store. If you’re shopping near Halloween, this will obviously be a little easier, in terms of locating supplies. Outside of fall, you may have to focus your efforts online. But, just gather a few items to place around the house or outside (we had our party at a community park area). You can see some of the ideas below for how I set up the decor.
Now, there are some seriously cool party decorations available on Amazon, that are so much fun! You can see some of my favorite choices below. I love how many new things are available for Harry Potter, even though the books and movies have been out for a while now!
- Harry Potter Birthday Banner and Cake Topper
- Floating Candles
- Backdrop and Balloon Kit
- White Owl Piñata
- Wizards Welcome, Muggles Tolerated Sign
- Flying Keys
These party supplies are a great way to jazz up your theme, without too much extra work. The floating candles and the flying keys would need to be strung up and hung in your home, or outside gazebo. The keys come with fishing nylon though, so you don’t even need to make an extra purchase for those. The backdrop is a great way to set up a dessert table, or even just use it for photos. And, I can NOT get enough of that cute white owl piñata!! It is amazing! Talk about a conversation starter.
Harry Potter Party Food Ideas
Food and drinks can be super fun for a Harry Potter Party. Some fun and easy desserts are golden snitch Ferrero Rochers, Chocolate frogs and Bertie Botts! We did some regular food on top of snacks. We tried to choose interesting things like Flaming Hot Cheetos and Doritos to add color to the table. Cupcakes are always popular as well! You can see some of the food we did below.
Below you can see some other options that are perfect for the theme. There’s a kit you can buy on Amazon for chocolate frogs. It comes with a plastic mold in the shape of a frog. You can use chocolate melts to make frogs! There’s also a fun kit that has little paper wings that are placed on Ferrer Rocher chocolates. It makes them look like golden snitches. And, if you do decide to make cupcakes, there are some super fun cupcake toppers!
- Mischief Managed Plates, Cups and Napkins
- Golden Snitch Papers
- Envelope Napkins
- Harry Potter Cupcake Toppers
- Chocolate Frog Mold Kits
The quickest and easiest way to get napkins and plates is to buy them in a set. I love the Mischief Managed set. It’s fun for adults or kids, and includes plates, cups and napkins! So, one purchase, and you’re all set! I also love the wizard envelope napkins. They make a great addition to your party to use with dessert or drinks, or just for extra fun.
HP Drink Ideas
For a drink option, you can make Butterbeer! You can use butterscotch candies and cream soda for kids. But, here’s the adult version:
- Butterscotch Schnapps
- Butterscotch Candies
- Cream Soda
Party Photo Booth
A photo booth is a great way to add an activity to a party! With a Harry Potter theme, it’s really easy to find things or make a few props. For our party, I encouraged people to dress up, and they did not disappoint!
Other things you could use as props are brooms, hats, scarves, books, glasses, or any wizard-like items you come across!
A really easy DIY is a wanted frame. You can buy one on Amazon, if you’re not the DIY type. Otherwise, you can get a picture mat from a frame store or a craft store and use sharpie to fill in the details. On the left below is the DIY version and the right is the one you can purchase here on Amazon.
Finally, you can use your own house or outdoors as a backdrop, or you can get a backdrop on Amazon, like this one for Honeyduke’s! Either way, your friends and family will have a blast pretending to be a part of the Wizarding World!
HP Party Activities
There are so many fun things in the Harry Potterverse that could make for a fun activity at a party. But, here are a few ideas that I did at my party. I had a face painting area, where I actually ended up painting a bunch of dark marks on people’s arms, versus painting their faces! You can see a dark picture of me painting on the left. On the right you can see our Quiddich set up! I got some nets at the dollar store and ripped the netting off to make these Quiddich goals. It was super easy!
You can also play a sorting game with some sprite, food dye and a cups with ice.
Here’s the DIY:
Take your cups and put a few drops of food dye at the bottom of the cup. Make sure to mix up the colors, so they aren’t all the same. Let the food dye dry. When people come to the party, fill the cups with ice, so they can’t see the colors. On their way in, hand everyone a cup. Tell them to go pour some Sprite in the cup. The Sprite will turn the color of the food dye and they’ll know what house they’re in. Of course, make sure you have a little sign that tells them what color corresponds to what house!
Harry Potter Party Favors
Harry Potter party favors can be so many different things. When we did our Harry Potter party, we did a candy bar, in honor of Honeydukes. Then we had Harry Potter bags similar to the ones below. I also found some other fun Harry Potter favor ideas on Amazon. You can see them below.
- Harry Potter Party Favor Bags
- Harry Potter Bracelets
- Bertie Botts Jelly Beans
- Harry Potter Scratch off Game
The scratch off game is a super fun ice breaker. Everyone just scratches off their card and the person who has the potion wins! You can do it at the beginning of the party, or the end, whatever works best. The rubber bracelets are a fun way to unite everyone, and give the people that didn’t dress up a way to participate. I love the bags for a party favor. I did a candy bar for my Harry Potter party, so they can throw that candy in the fun bags. Even more fun if you give them the bag that belongs to the house they got sorted into!
Wrap Up
There are so many ways to throw a Harry Potter Party and my ideas are just one way! If you have some awesome Harry Potter Party ideas or tips, please share below in the comments! I’d love to have a bunch of ideas for everyone to pick and choose from! Otherwise, enjoy your party and don’t get into too much mischief!
